Approximately 50 communications and leadership personnel representing nearly 40 state agencies gathered on July 30, 2014, at the Georgia Emergency Management Agency’s State Operations Center in Atlanta to discuss emergency communications and lessons learned from the winter storms that struck Georgia earlier this year.

The presentations varied, but they all focused on how government agencies can better communicate with their audiences before, during and after an emergency.

Cross-agency coordination like this is imperative for much of the work communicators do. This is especially true during an emergency, where cooperation between agencies is imperative and allows communicators to amplify messages, grow audiences, and better communicate with customers. To that end, representatives from the private sector (Georgia Power and The Weather Channel) were also invited to some and share their “best practices” with the State.

Below are the presentations from Georgia’s third #TeamGaSocial Summit:

• Georgia Department of Administrative Services:
Employee Communications: Tips and strategies for effectively communicating with your employees before, during and after an emergency

• Georgia National Guard
State/Federal Cooperation: What communications role Federal entities can play in a local emergency; and how words, actions and images can impact the perception of an emergency response

• Georgia Regional Transportation Authority:
Customer Relations: Moving past the disaster: Changing the conversation without shutting down engagement

• Georgia Power
Public/Private Partnerships: How private sector PR assets can support public sector communications needs in an emergency

• The Weather Channel
Media Relations: Resources and information TWC provides during an inclement weather emergency that state agencies should be aware of; and information news outlets want from state government during an emergency and what channels they monitor to get it

• Georgia Emergency Management Agency
Coordinated Communications: How the messaging from all participating partners gets de-conflicted and unified during an emergency; What information GEMA pushes out during an emergency and through which channels; and innovations and improvements in GEMA’s emergency communications processes

For pictures and discussion from the day’s event, please click here.

If you “do social media” for your state agency, we invite you to join our Facebook group by requesting access here.

Georgia Department of Driver Services (DDS) Commissioner Rob Mikell, under the direction of Governor Nathan Deal, is providing a new emergency preparedness initiative for customers obtaining a driver’s license or state identification card.  Customers may request that their blood type be printed on the back of their permanent card. This addition is completely optional and may help medical personnel during an emergency. (Sample Attached)

“In an emergency situation, medical personnel need up-to-date health information to quickly and efficiently treat injuries,” said Governor Deal. “To better assist these first responders, our Department of Driver Services is now giving Georgians the option to include their blood type on their license or identification cards. This is yet another example of our continued commitment to the safety and well-being of our state’s drivers.”

“I am grateful for the support of Governor Deal and the partnership with Dr. Brenda Fitzgerald, Commissioner, Department of Public Health (DPH), to inform our customers of this new option,” said Commissioner Mikell.  “It is completely optional but may serve as an important medical alert for those that utilize it.”

“Every second matters in an emergency,” said Brenda Fitzgerald, M.D., Commissioner of the Georgia Department of Public Health. “If a person becomes incapacitated and cannot speak, it’s our hope that this information could speak for them, alerting rescuers to the person’s blood type and saving precious time.”

On the application for issuance or renewal of a driver’s license or ID card, customers will indicate if they would like their blood type printed on the back of their permanent card. A customer who indicates yes will then select their blood type.   The customer’s permanent license or ID will have their blood type printed on the back of the card under Medical Information.

For complete driver education, licensing and testing information including many online services, visit www.dds.ga.gov.

Last year, there were seven weather and climate disaster events across the United States with losses exceeding $1 billion each. These events included five severe weather and tornado events, a major flood event, and the western drought/heat wave. Overall, these events killed 109 people and had significant economic effects on the areas impacted.

All of these events highlight the need for emergency preparation — highlighted by events like the National Severe Weather Preparedness Week, which runs from March 2-8, 2014.

Being prepared for severe weather hazards does not have to be complicated or expensive. A few simple steps to prepare and take action could help save lives anywhere – at home, in schools, and in the workplace before tornadoes and severe thunderstorms and extreme weather strikes.

Know your risk. Take action.
Severe weather knows no boundaries and affects every individual. Being prepared and acting quickly could be a matter of survival. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA) have the responsibility of handling Federal and State emergency events. Ready Georgia,  GEMA’s statewide emergency preparedness campaign, offers tools that residents can use to create an emergency supply kit, develop a communications plan and stay informed about potential threats. Ready Georgia’s interactive website, www.ready.ga.gov, provides detailed information on Georgia-specific emergency preparedness and allows users to create a personal profile and receive a customized checklist and family communications plan.

Employers can use the Ready Your Business guide to create custom contingency plans, and children can visit the ReadyKids page for age-appropriate information, videos and games. For preparedness on the go, families can also download Ready Georgia’s free mobile app at http://www.ready.ga.gov/mobileapp to learn how to prepare for emergencies, create family communications plans and more.

Have you prepared an emergency plan for your home and your agency location? If so, is it up to date?  More than half the households in the United States have no emergency plan. GEMA and FEMA offer a lot of information to help develop a plan on how to deal with emergencies.

Ready.GA.gov offers some of the following guidelines for homes:

• Supply Checklist for Severe Weather emergencies
  • Do you have a stored water supply of at least 3 gallons per day per person?
  • Do you have a 3 day Non-Perishable food supply for your family?
  • Do you have a manual can opener, batteries, flashlights and a NOAA alert radio?
  • Do you have a fully stocked First Aid kit?
  • Are you prepared for a cold weather emergency if the power goes out?
• Fire & Medical emergency preparation for your location or home:
  • Are there two ways out of your home or office?
  • Have you established a meeting point once you have evacuated?
  • Do you have a First Aid kit?  Are Emergency numbers posted?
  • Do you know who has First Aid training at your location?
• Flooding preparation:
  • Do you know what items you want to take with you during an evacuation?
  • Do you have emergency contact numbers in case roads are flooded in your area or at your location?

Of course these are the short list of items.  A few minutes of preparation can save a life or make you far more comfortable in case of an emergency situation.